Super Smash Bros. Melee (2001)

What more can you ask from a game released over a decade ago that is still widely played today? In 2017 people still talk about and play Super Smash Bros. Melee, and I don't see that changing anytime soon. Impressive for a fighting game released in 2001. If I had to nitpick for issues with the game, I would say that the characters aren't very well balanced. That being said, I am rating this game based on the fun/enjoyment factor. There's something special about kicking everyone's ass with Pichu. Another thing I'm not a fan of is how Ganondorf's moveset is a clone of Captain Falcon's moveset. I understand that Ganondorf almost got cut and that's why they did it, which is why I won't dock points for it on Melee. Brawl, however, is another story.

They took the original Super Smash Bros. And made it 100 times better. All of the original characters came back, they added side special moves, characters like Marth and Sheik went on to be fan favorites in this franchise, and the introduction of Giga Bowser was badass.

The music is amazing, the characters really come to life in the game, there's tons of extra stuff to do, like collecting trophies and event matches, and it is has been and will continue to be cornerstone for many a fun evening with friends. One of the classics.

I've already said my piece about this game, which you can find here, here or here, but I've never finished it. I feel bad about that because I love the game's premise. Not for any good reason, simply because I love the genre and turning it into a roguelike added substantial interest for me. I bought it out of principle, not just because I wanted to play it. I crave more games like it simply for my own relaxation.

Rogue Legacy's mission is captured by its title. It's about the legacy of a family of rogues. But it's also about roguelikes, and how legacy is the key to them.

Think about the game's diary entries. They describe your experience playing the game, as one of many adventurers in a long line who has entered the fortress. Although the diary is written by your first ancestor to enter the castle, it is famed for its treasure and already well traveled. The first of your line finds corpses scattered around, but none of their maps match their own. Thus, the castle rearranges itself, like Dracula's castle in Castlevania,

There's nothing new about restarting. There's nothing new about randomly generated content. That's the roguelike. But the scenarios differ, usually hinging on being gamey and depending on tropes to usher the player along from attempt to attempt.

Rogue Legacy does hinge on a gamey idea, being a fantasy ransacking in the vein of castle-crawlers past. But, the scenario is more thoughtful than usual.

When you die, your gold bounty as well as your armor (but not some special items) is somehow (this isn't important) given to your offspring left behind. These offspring will avenge your death and go into the castle themselves. I imagine the developer could have asked themselves a very simple question in order to develop the game's concept: "What's an endless cycle of rebirth that is easily imported into a game? Oh right, real life." I don't mean to say this is how it happened; the game borrows a lot of inspiration and might root itself elsewhere. But that it blends so well with the roguelike genre isn't coincidence.

This is opposed to Spelunky, which has the same adventurer reanimate with an ouroboros superimposed to tell you that this is all a part of the game. That's cute, and this is less so. This isn't better, but creating a less gamey world that makes sense builds interest for me. Roguelikes mostly have the same theme about perseverance and seeking perfection of execution amongst even randomized elements. Very meta, very satisfying. Putting it into a legacy's lifespan gives that message more heft. Choosing an heir who will correct the course which led to my ancestor's doom. Spending his money on what will yield a fruitful bounty. The developers have called this flash game style progression system a "rogue-lite." But it still says a lot about the roguelike.

People call Spelunky a perfect game because it represents all of these ideas through gameplay, and your own skill getting better as opposed to gamey progression. But what's more gamey? It's a nonsense question but it points out the silliness in comparing the value of both games. Rogue-lite indeed.